In this captivating short novel, A Small World, from the mind of author Michael Blackwell, the reader is submerged into the life of a young man named Jordan Small. Jordan is a nice young man who has a good future ahead of him if he can get past his circus of a family that doesnt seem to let up at any turn. From beginning to end, you wonder about the choices he will make as he deals with adversity befitting someone far older than him. It cant be too hard, right? Its easier said than done when you have a drug-addicted prostitute of a mother and an abusive father. This lethal combination lands him, his sister, Janay, and his two brothers, Jamal and Joseph, in the arms of their street-hustling Uncle Naim.

Naim firmly standing on the belief of do as I say and not as I do pushes them to live a good life, while he leads a bad life all around them. As if an irresponsible uncle is not enough, Jordan must find a way to deal with the mental strain of a sister being abused and his brother Jamal becoming addicted to the streets, somewhat following in the footsteps of their uncle. The small light at the end of the tunnel seems to be Joseph, the oldest and his only good example. However, he is away at college playing basketball, however long that lasts. Jordans character begins to unfold as he goes from nice and gullible to witty and gritty when trauma strikes his life and forces him to grow up too fast. Will Jordan lead a promising fulfilled life as his Uncle Naim ultimately desires, or will the pull and call of the streets and the ongoing stress of his life prove too much for him to handle? Either way it goes, the story of this young mans journey to early adulthood holds onto you from the start to finish as it promises to give you tear-drenching moments and heart-stealing ones as well. They say there is good in all of us. The only problem is that they also say the good die young.